Cleaning Hygiene Today Cleaning Hygiene Magazine
The pandemic changed the world forever. While wearing masks and social distancing are now optional, one critical habit remains: proper handwashing, which includes thorough drying. People are washing their hands at an unprecedented rate, and that puts the restroom experience under more intense scrutiny than ever before.
“Washing your hands has always been important, as shown by the CDC mantra, ‘Clean hands save lives.’” said William Gagnon, COO, Excel Dryer. “The pandemic reminded the world of the importance of proper hand hygiene. There is also a keen focus on restrooms and how a person’s experience in them can directly affect a company’s reputation and its bottom line.”
Excel Dryer, Inc., a leader in touchless hand drying technology, combined forces with MetrixLab, a renowned, worldwide market research firm, to conduct a comprehensive, first-of-its-kind global survey called Post Pandemic Perceptions of Commercial Restrooms. The goal was to find out how architects, design professionals, business owners, facility managers and consumers feel about commercial restrooms in the post-pandemic world. The survey engaged more than 4,000 participants in the United States, Europe and Asia, aiming to capture shifts in perception and preferences regarding commercial restrooms.
No matter who you are or where you live, Excel Dryer says the results were clear:
- The number one concern—across all demographics and locations—is cleanliness and hygiene.
- 100 per cent agree—a dirty restroom reflects poorly on the establishment. In fact, 80 per cent of those surveyed said they would not, or might not, return to a restaurant with a dirty restroom.
- The number one contributing factor to a dirty restroom is paper towels on the floor or overflowing trash cans.
Consumers agree a dirty restroom reflects poor management, while architects, restaurant owners and facility managers around the world find the cleanliness of a commercial restroom reflects the extent to which a business values its customers and employees.
According to Gagnon, “touchless, high-efficiency hand dryers addresses the very problem this survey highlights: when people see paper towels on a restroom floor, it looks dirty and ‘feels’ dirty”. He added: “If you’re still using paper towels, this survey shows it’s time to make a change.”
